Pubdate: Mon, 29 Jun 2009
Source: Philippine Star (Philippines)
Copyright: PhilSTAR Daily Inc. 2009
Contact:  http://www.philstar.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/622

5TH IN THE WORLD

Here is another dubious distinction for the  Philippines: from 1998 
to 2007, the country ranked  fifth in the world in the amount of 
shabu confiscated,  according to the United Nations Office on Drug 
and  Crime. The UNODC, in its 2009 World Drug Report, noted  that 
in this area, the Philippines ranked only behind  China and the 
United States, which have considerably  larger populations, and 
Thailand and Taiwan.

The positive point here is that shabu, or  methamphetamine
hydrochloride, is being seized by  authorities. But this does not
dispel the fact that  shabu is being manufactured in large quantities
in this  country, which has become a major shabu exporter and 
transshipment point for the international drug  trafficking industry.
The UNODC report noted that  Philippine-made shabu is shipped to
Australia, Canada,  New Zealand and the US. "Manufacture often occurs
in  industrial-sized laboratories operated by transnational  organized
crime with most chemists being foreign  nationals," the report said.

Anti-narcotics units conduct regular raids on such  laboratories
nationwide. So why does the illegal  industry continue to flourish?
Shabu trafficking is  hugely profitable, and manufacturers have the
means to  buy protection from law enforcement agencies. How many  of
the actual operators of shabu laboratories have been  arrested in
raids? Only janitors and security guards  are the ones usually caught,
indicating that the  operators are tipped off by their protectors.

The rare times that drug dealers themselves are  arrested and
prosecuted, they can buy their freedom  through corrupt jail guards,
prosecutors, judges and  immigration officers. Their release is also
facilitated  by the technical lapses committed by anti-narcotics 
agents who are poorly trained in conducting legitimate  raids,
searches, seizures and arrests. Such lapses can  be used as a valid
excuse for the dismissal of cases by  corrupt prosecutors or judges.

All these problems can be addressed, given the  political will and
resources. But these problems have  been around for many years, and
the illegal drug trade  continues to thrive despite the fact that the 
Philippines has some of the toughest drug laws in the  world. Fighting
the drug menace takes more than piling  up confiscated evidence. More
importantly, drug  traffickers must be caught, prosecuted and punished. 
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MAP posted-by: Richard R Smith Jr